By theaaxis - 26/11/2014 21:43 - United States

Today, my mother requested that I return the $500 she had previously given me to help me pay for college. Her reasoning? "You work three jobs, you can afford it." I work three jobs because she decided buying herself a car was more important than my schooling. FML
I agree, your life sucks 35 272
You deserved it 3 718

theaaxis tells us more.

theaaxis 27

Wow, this got published! To give a little background, my mom had been telling me for years that she would pay for my first two years of college, though she's a fickle woman, so I kept a backup plan. When she withdrew the offer, I accepted the situation gracefully, and am now taking a gap year, working 77 hours a week, so I won't have to depend on her. Any resentment over the money is over the week's notice I was given, which even still makes me worry about her financial situation more so than my own. That she wants even the gift back does bother me a little, but I by no means expected her to pay my way through life, and am very much financially independent. Thanks much to the many of you who understood!

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Top comments

illinoiscentral 16

not after she gave it as a gift. At that point it stopped being her money and started being OP's money.

92 2
Steffi3 40

Well, if she wants to buy a car, she should be allowed. It stinks that she makes you return her gift, though. It's a gift, after all

94 9

Comments

tazmanmike2013 17

Sorry to hear about your mom taking the money back OP. Major kudos to you on maintaining three jobs to keep yourself in school though. That shows you're dedicated to your future and although it's painful now, future employers will reward you for this later. Studies show that students who work to put themselves thru school typically achieve higher grades, are more likely to graduate, and land better paying jobs than their counter parts who don't work and only rely on loans or parents to pay all their expenses. Keep up the good work, you'll benefit from it in a few short years.

11 2
EvilLittleMan 23

It's a shame dear ol Mom didn't think ahead years ago and start putting back for the college education. I started that process five years ago and still have six years to go. Yes, I agree not many parents do pay for a college education but those who want their child to succeed will make the sacrifices. It's called having a plan. And no, I don't make the big bucks. .

5 6
AshleyBiersack 5

I'm sorry, but your mom's an absolute bitch.

1 5
CrownedHellbound 11

Maybe it's different in the USA, but over here not many parents pay for their ADULT offsprings' university/college. Most people are independent and don't expect anything from their parents.. That being said it is a bit unfair to take back gift money you had already worked into your budget.

3 15
stargirl_95 24

I don't know where you live but you're also not taking into account that college education in the US is really expensive and the job market there is terrible so it's not easy for every unskilled fresh out of high school kid to get a job. Also, where I'm from it's typical for parents to pay for university because university fees are really expensive, it's difficult to find an unskilled job that pays enough for college, and parents would rather allow their kid to put all their time and effort concentrating on school work than make them go through the extra stress of trying to juggle schoolwork with supporting themselves.

11 1
CrownedHellbound 11

From what I've heard it's more expensive here in Australia. The job market is so shitty that alot of parents can't even afford to pay for their kids uni. Over here we're raised to not have such a sense of entitlement because of this.

1 9
Hiimhaileypotter 52

I don't think it's really a sense of entitlement, #68. Parents here in the US generally help out if they can because here, you can't usually get a great job until you get a college degree, and if you can't get a job to support yourself without a degree how will you get money to pay for said degree?

7 0
browneyed019 3

I don't understand how people are using the cost argument as a reason why parents should pay for your education. Getting grants, loans, and scholarships here in the US is really easy. I have student loans and I'm living as if I'm still in school to pay them off as quickly as possible. Also OP doesn't go into detail on his mom's finances, maybe she has more than just one child, maybe she's a single parent (which I'm assuming because they're saying mom not parents) and maybe something major happened to her old car meaning she needed one.

0 3
stargirl_95 24

I interpreted "she decided buying herself a car was more important than my education" as OPs mother blew her college fund on a car. In which case OP has every right to be angry because she was counting on that money to put her through college

10 1
tnf0920 9

Unfortunately degrees aren't worth much now a days so a car is probably better.

3 2
weveallbeenthere 30

Maybe she need it bad enough to ask her kid back for it, desperate times desperate measures. Be glad she helping you with your college, it's not any easy thing to do.

2 2
Sathane 21

And you're entitled to her money, why? Just because she birthed you? Time to put on your grown up panties and plan for your own life.

4 20
IneededAName99 5

Alright #59, let's see you pay for college all by yourself right out of highschool, not to mention get decent grades while working 3 jobs.

9 1
love_me_electric 20

Student loans? Not sure how it is in the US, but in Canada it's dead easy to get enough money to get through university. Yeah, you'll have to pay interest on it, but it's still possible to go to university if your parents can't/won't pay for it.

2 5
AninOnin 24

Most kids of out high school haven't had the chance to build up credit, which is a way for banks to know how likely you are to pay them back. A kid with no credit, asking for a 10k, 20k, 50k loan for school? Not gonna happen :/

3 0
hellphone_fml 37

People keep complaining my generation is "entitled" but college cost about 150k anywhere thats not a community college, they expect all the money upfront and the government wont let us take out that many loans. Tell me what kid just out of high school can pay that much right away without any help?

14 0